A lot can happen in 21 years—birth, potty training, puberty, driving, graduation, and drinking (legally) is the generic path a young adult must stumble through in the first 21 years of his or her life. A little over two decades, an evidently notable chunk of life, is also the time it’s taken Marcus Lambkin aka “Shit Robot” to cultivate his first real album from diapers to high school grad, so to speak. From The Cradle To The Rave has been a musical growing process for Lambkin, resulting in the sum of 21 years of life full of various musical tastes and trends, the evolution of a friendship with DFA’s James Murphy, immersion in music scenes from Dublin to NYC, and eventually becoming a dad. We recently got the chance to chat with Marcus Lambkin about what went into From The Cradle To The Rave (due out September 21 via DFA Records) and why, after the length of an entire young adult's lifetime, he was finally ready to release an album.
Clubplanet: You got your start in Dublin and then moved to NYC in 1992. What was going on in the Dublin music scene at that time compared to NYC and what made you decide to make the move?
Shit Robot: At that time the Dublin scene was hard techno; it was very different than New York. The techno scene in New York was very underground, you had to go to a rave to hear it. In Dublin techno was everywhere. I had always wanted to travel, I just didn’t know where. Then I saw an ad in the paper for the U.S. Green Card Lottery. I applied for it and won one. It was like a golden ticket! As soon as it came thorough, I was gone.
CP: What did you love about the music and nightlife in New York during the ‘90s? Is there anything you didn’t love about it?
Shit Robot: It was wild. Places like The Limelight, Sound Factory and Save the Robots blew me away—it was a freak circus. This was very different from home. People didn’t dress up in costumes to go out in Dublin.
The clubs did take a little getting used to, though. It was a very different culture. The big thing for me back then was that the DJ was not the center of attention—the promoter ruled. Flyers would have a huge list of promoters on it and numbers to call to get on the guestlist, but little or no mention of the DJ. Coming from Europe where the DJ is like a god, this was very strange.
The thing I loved the most about the New York scene at the time was the bars. There were so many bars in the East Village and they all had DJs and music every night of the week. This was before Giuliani, so there was dancing going on in all these places. I thought the bar scene was more fun than the clubs.
CP: So you met James Murphy from DFA by using your carpentry/cabinet-making skills? How did that happen? How did your relationship with him evolve?
Shit Robot: I met James because we shared an office space at the place that has now become DFA HQ. There was a screening room in the building and we used to play Nintendo Golf and Mario Kart on the big screen while drinking pints of vodka, orange juice and cranberry after work. I think James was amused by this kid from Ireland who was playing him dance music that he didn’t find terribly annoying. Any time I would pull out one of my favorite records to play him, he would pull out the record it sampled. We were both getting schooled; it was a really fun time.
CP: How did you come up with the name “Shit Robot”?
Shit Robot: That was the name James came up with for our party at Plant Bar. James and I would play there on a Friday night every now and then. They were great parties; the music was a mix of The Stooges, disco and acid house. I just sort of adopted the name afterwards. We always loved it.
CP: From The Cradle To The Rave is your first legit album and it took you 21 years to put out. Why did you wait so long? Why did you decide that this was finally the time to put out an album?
Shit Robot: I finally got it finished, that was the main reason. It’s really been about three or four years in the making, but I had a break in between when my wife had a baby girl. It is an amalgamation of the music I’ve been listening to for 21 years though for sure; it’s all in there.
CP: Obviously a lot of different influences went into this final product, some you’re probably conscious of and others that have just evolved unknowingly. Is there anything or anyone that definitely played a part in this album?
Shit Robot: Yes, James Murphy for sure. I mean, besides the fact that he produced it, he is the main reason I’m making music. He’s the one that pushed me from the start. Pretty much everything I know, I learned from him.
CP: Do you have a favorite track?
Shit Robot: Yes, “Take ‘Em Up” the one with Nancy [Whang]. Maybe it’s because it was the last one I did; I’ve been listening to some of the others for over two years now, but I love that one. I think Nancy did an amazing job. She killed it.
Clubplanet: Are you playing any of this live?
Shit Robot: No, I’m a DJ, not a musician. I can barely pilot my own studio on a good day, never mind doing it live in front of hundreds of people.
CP: Are you thinking about another album? What’s next for you musically?
Shit Robot: Yes, there’ll be another album, but I’m not going to worry about it right now, I’m just going to enjoy finally having this one out and then maybe make some dance 12”s first, before getting stuck into number two.
CP: Besides the new album, what else is going on in your life?
Shit Robot: Not a lot; the album is taking up most of my time right now. I am working on a video with my good friend, Timothy Saccenti, so I’m really excited about that. He’s my boy, super talented and one of my favorite people on the planet, so working with him will be great and a good excuse to get together and have some fun.